IBM to shuttle retirees off health plan

International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM) is planning to remove roughly 110,000 retires from its company-sponsored health insurance and provide them with a payment to enroll in a health-insurance exchange.

The Wall Street Journal reported the move by IBM is a sign that even massive, well-funded companies are unlikely to keep providing once-common benefits in the face of rising medical costs. IBM is thought to be Research Triangle Park's largest employer, having employed 10,000 people in 2008, although the company has not released an updated headcount since.